LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — JM Associates, the video production arm of B.A.S.S., has won the Silver Telly Award for its Bassmaster LIVE coverage of the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
The live-stream coverage of the 2018 Texas Fest earned the top award in the Online General/Live Events category during the 40th annual Telly Awards program, which honors excellence in television, video and digital programming. More than 12,000 entries for Telly Awards were received. Other entries in the Online Live Events competition were live streams of Broadway Plays, an Opryland production and the Daytime Emmys, among others.
“Getting recognized by the Tellys is just a huge testament to the hours and hours of hard work by the entire Bassmaster LIVE crew,” said Tim Schick, coordinating producer and director for JM Associates. “From the camera guys in the field to the unparalleled analysis in the studio, we are extremely proud of the stories we get to share with our massive audience. This award underscores the passion and dedication of a lot of people who bring this sport to life and make it accessible like never before.”
B.A.S.S. and JM launched the first live-stream, on-the-water coverage of bass tournaments at the 2015 Bassmaster Classic and have been expanding and refining it ever since. New in 2019 are LIVE cameras on 10 Bassmaster Elite Series anglers’ boats all four days of competition, plus “LIVE Mix” bonus coverage.
Bassmaster LIVE is streamed on Bassmaster.com and ESPN3.
In addition to the Telly Award, two hosts of Bassmaster programs have won prestigious awards for their television shows.
Mark Zona, a host of Bassmaster LIVE and The Bassmasters TV show, won a Golden Moose Award from the Outdoor Channel in the “Best of MyoutdoorTV” category for his Zona’s Awesome Fishing Show, which is also produced by JM Associates. He won the fan-favorite Golden Moose award for Best Fishing Show in 2015.
“I’m honestly not really big into awards, but it means so much to see the JM crew getting recognized for what I put them through,” Zona said. “The most humbling part of the Best of MyoutdoorTV award is the number of viewers who have downloaded ZAFS. I can’t say ‘thank you’ enough.”
Dave Mercer, Bassmaster Elite Series and Classic emcee, won two Golden Moose Awards — the Best Freshwater Fishing Show and the Fan Favorite Best Catch awards — for his Facts of Fishing television program.
“We could not be happier or more honored to be chosen to win in two categories this season,” Mercer said. “Making it even more special is the fact that the awards were judged by two different groups, one by fellow producers and one by the most important people any show has: the viewers.
“None of this would have been possible without the tireless work of the entire Facts of Fishing production team at Vantage Point Media House. They do all the hard work, I’m just the lucky guy that gets to make the casts and catch the fish.”
